New to the volvo scene
 

Hi all,

Picked up my "new to me" volvo V40 1.9d 2003 and so far I've racked up 3 thousand miles on it in just two weeks pushing it to 177k miles and fair play the engine and gearbox both are really smooth, its not quick by any measure but as a car to use back and forth to work its proved to be a good buy!

I've got a few niggles with it I could do with help with,

Firstly the drivers side door doesn't lock with the fob (I'll try the key tomorrow) all the other doors lock/unlock but the d/s stays unlocked (the pin stays down 100% of the time) I will take the door card off and have a look just wondered if it was a common thing to save me hunting.

The clutch is high on it, a new clutch isn't the end of the world but again wondered if there was a way to adjust it before spending the cash?

lastly and the one that confuses me the most, the low washer fluid light keeps coming on despite the bottle being full, someone has also rewired it so the rear wiper doesn't work and you have to push the button on the side of the stalk to get the front windscreen to clear which is all a bit weird...

Tomorrow I'll be jacking the car up as the front spring on the d/s looks like its snapped as its half the height of the p/s one and as such its scraping over the smallest of bumps, I've also got to check the brakes as I suspect the front brakes are rubbing so I'll inspect them and try and free them up.

At this kind of mileage I'm fully aware its going to have a few battle scars, any ideas of how to get a few more ponies out of it without forking out loads of money on a remap as mine is the 100bhp model and driving around west wales (very hilly) its causing me a few issues when overtaking!

The previous owner also took all the interior bulbs out because there was an "issues with the door closing resulting in the car thinking the door is always open".... fixed it by closing the rear door correctly lol!

Hi mate and welcome.

Hello and welcome to the forum.Just some random thoughts for what they're worth,the low fluid light could be down to a sticky/stuck level sensor.The lock button staying down would suggest it's become detached from the operating rod[s] while the lock itself not operating from the fob possibly a faulty microswitch.Re-wiring the wash/wipe stalk seems an odd one though!A replacement stalk needed maybe?

Welcome aboard.

re the door lock, yes, I believe it's a relatively common issue.

I've had similar on both S40 & V40 & you may well be able to deal with this without having to remove any trim panels or suchlike.

For one I cured it by pulling the pin up with a pair of pliers & that seemed to reset it so it then went up & down with the fob & key.

For the other car, after a while the pin stopped going up & down again, but as the lock was still operating I didn't worry about resetting it again - still working this way today.

Re the low washer fluid light, as Dippydog suggested, it could simply be a sticky sensor. On a 940 we had I removed the container, washed it out & cured the same issue, but on the x40 ... the washer bottle's not as easy to get to.

I can't imagine why a previous owner would have rewired the switch (or elsewhere) to make the rear wiper not work, so that's probably not causing the light to flicker.

Re power, lots of posts on here about getting more out of the diesel engine, however, as yours is now at least 177k (assuming a full service history) you might do better with simply giving it a service & tune up to keep it in good stage-one order.

AFAIK there's no adjustment to the clutch, it simply wears until it goes. Diesel owners on here will be able to suggest possible prices for a replacement etc.

A suggestion: Ebay sell engine code readers & so if yours is showing the Check Engine Light (on the RHS of the dash) then you could pull that data & that might point you to any issues to deal with.

A question: you mention the previous owner removed some bulbs due to some issue, so have you checked that all the dashboard lights come on and go off correctly? It's just that we all know that sometimes owners may try to cover up a fault or two by blanking out warning lights.

Hi both,

Had a fiddle with the car today and got a few niggles crossed off.

CharlesStevenson - Bang on the money with the door lock, I pulled it up with some long nose pliers and its now working fully. A massive thank you for that as it saved me some time pulling the door card off to investigate!

I'll have a look at the sensor some time this week as I've got a few more jobs (mainly being a snapped front spring!) to tackle its not a major issue just bugs me having lights on the dash especially as it comes and goes at its own leisure...

I didn't think there would be but it was just wishful thinking but a new clutch isn't the end of the world... just something best avoided if poss.

I have to say, I've never owned a Volvo and nor did I plan on doing so and coming from a 19plate company car to this I'm amazed at how smooth it is (even with a snapped spring) the engine strong and the gearbox is really really smooth just the clutch needs a look at. the other thing that took me by surprise is the lack of rust anywhere on the car, only some surface rust behind the mudflap's and some in the boot area below the spare wheel... but the underside looks like its been re-sealed at sometime of its life as its solid as a rock.

I've noticed a oil leak on it but I think I've tracked it down to a split in a pipe so that'll get fixed followed up by a full service then onto getting her onto 200k miles!

Thank you both for your help, and I look forward to getting some more miles done in this old girl.

Glad the trick with the pliers worked for you and, yes, the S/V40 are quite a good, positive surprise for new owners.

A common oil leak on the 1.9d is at the top of the engine where the shut off valve, which looks like a throttle body, meets the inlet manifold. Theres a rubber o-ring which shrinks over time and you get some oil seeping out. Oil in the air into the engine is normal as it is put there by excess crankcase pressure from the PCV system.

I had a snapped spring on my V40d 2 years ago, I replaced my entire front struts with a set from a scrapped v40 for £70. To save yourself hassle and a headache, buy yourself some anti roll bar drop links for the front and tell yourself you will need to cut off the old ones with a grinder. I've done about 40k miles since I put the used struts on, smooth as butter still. 201k and counting for mine.

Reference the front brakes, if you think there's a sticking issue I would bet 99% you have a seized guide pin. You can get a drill bit the same size as the receiving part on the caliper carrier just for cleaning it out and give the pins a good clean too and check for excessive wear. Then use a good, suitable grease for the pins. I did this not long after buying my car on 124k and ever since, the front 4 pads are all identical thickness and the discs look amazing with a barely noticable lip on then.

I picked up "new to me" a v40 1.9 04 & have had the timing belt and auxiliary belt + pensioners done, I have the current problem of trying to locate a new crank pulley as mine is on its way out. The volvo part number is 30662348 now nls since 2014 and am trying to find a replacement one. The car has a Renault engine and spoke to a Renault dealer who have me 23 part numbers of possible replacement pulleys. Does anyone know of the Renault part number to find the correct pulley?. I live in South West Wales and Swansea or Aberystwyth the nearest dealers to me.

Thanks, I've got two days off, so my plan for today (monday) is to de-oil the engine bay and surrounding component's to help identify any/all leaks. my father in law suggested that it may of been coming from there so thanks for the info, what you've just said makes a fair bit of sense and matches up with what we were thinking so we'll source another o-ring for it!

The spring is all sorted now, it's got a new one on, I did order a drop link as in my previous experience they never come off, but this one came off as if it was fresh out of the factory so I returned the part and saved myself a few quid, I did order a new ball joint as mine wasn't in great condition, it did require a fair bit of heat to get it out. :rolleyes:

I've done exactly that I've taken all of the guide pins out given them some brake grease and I've cleaned up the callipers as they were understandably rusty and they don't seem to be rubbing any more, all the pads/disks were in great condition so that was some good news.

Managed to sort a lot of jobs out on it as it was all the little frustrating things such as the interior lights not working/sub not doing anything/horn being hit or miss most of my issues were down to fuse related problems. the previous owner lost the locking wheel nut so all 4 have been hacked off and replaced with standard nuts... I'm certain no-one is stealing my wheels any time soon.

Deep clean time for the old girl I've pulled the interior out as something smells fishy! found a few old style £1 coins and 20ps so at this rate she'd pay for her service :teeth_smile: